Chicago 10

Chicago 10 is a documentary about a group of activists who were put on trial on the accusations of conspiring to start riots at the 1968 democratic convention in Chicago. Among the accused were Abbie Hoffman, someday-to-be senator Tom Hayden, and Black Panther leader Bobby Seal.

I'm not sure documentary is quite the precise word for what this unique film is, parts are certainly documentary, yet other parts are more like an animated narrative movie.

The film is broken into two main story lines. The fist uses news footage to tell the story of the activists at the convention and the bloody police response. The others story line uses animation to bringg to life the actual court transcripts of the trial.

Among the things that make this film unique is that unlike most documentaries there are almost no talking head shots of people explaining the events that occurred. All the documentary footage is from news footage shot in 1968 and presented without voiceover interpretation.

Many parts of the film are hilarious. The proceedings of the court trial verge on the ridiculous. Excluding Bobby Seal, the accused referred to themselves as The Merry Pranksters and in-spite of the gravity of the charges refused to take the authority of the court seriously.

On the other hand the elderly judge seemed to be a relic of a bygone era and had little respect for the constitution or civil rights. His main concern seemed to be his own authority. He seemed completely baffled by the behavior of the accused and the overall assumption within the court was that the accused were social deviants and therefore guilty.

Among the absurdities of the trail were calling Allen Ginsberg to the stand (he was not one of the accused) and asking him to read selections of his erotic poems. Again the only purpose of this was to shock the jury into understanding what immoral people the yippies were.

As the trial progresses the humor of the proceedings soon evaporates. Bobby Seal demands his constitutional right to be his own layer and is denied by he judge. When he points to a painting of George Washington and calls him a slave owner, he is gagged and shackled. The cruel irony of placing a black leader in shackles seems to be lost on the judge, but it is shocking to witness, even in animation form.


The story of the 1968 convention is equally disturbing. In the early stages we see the disorganized activists trying to plan the protest. Their approach to the event was as lighthearted as their approach to the trial. On the first day the event was more of a concert with a few political speeches in the park. Teenage girls and middle aged mothers mixed freely with the hippies. It looked as peaceful as Woodstock.

When evening came the out-of-town people planned to camp in the park. Chicago’s mayor had other plans. As night fell police tried to run the people out of the park using tear gas and swinging batons. For three days straight the confrontation heated up.

On the last day a march was planned to lead towards the convention. The police came in with full riot gear, armed with bayonets and machine guns. Jeeps moved in line against the protestors, barbed wire strung in front of the vehicles to eviscerate anyone who came near. In the final minutes leading up to the riots the protesters sat on the street and sang “We Shall Overcome.” The police response was pure carnage. They threw teargas and then attacked. Clubbing men, woman, and kids alike. All with blind fury.

Chicago 10 is an important piece of American history that won’t be taught in your high school history class. It is also an engaging movie that is worth searching for in the cracks between the superhero movies and Hollywood romantic comedies